Morrissey - Ringleader of the Tormentors Tours 2006
War is over, art is old, I am fat and you are here"

Morrissey! Morrissey! Morrissey! (Think "'ere we go!") bellowed from the balconies and stalls of the Birmingham Symphony Hall as if it were the terraces of a Cup Final game. Mozzer's die-hard fans (you could almost say Fundamentalists) do not like to be kept waiting. Striding on stage to rapturous applause, El Mozzalini (as he's now called due to his Rome residence) and his band greet the audience with a bow and take up their instruments to kick us up the arse with the opener "First of the Gang to Die"

Thrashing his mircophone lead, clutching his chest and reaching down to touch the hands of front row fans, Morrissey seems more comfortable on stage then last time I saw him. More jovial (yes that's right, jovial) and not as forced.

Throughout the gig grown men literally launch themselves towards him, like teenaged girls at a Busted show (I would imagine), but they were mostly deflected by heavy-set bouncers that seemed to have the skills of Ninjas!

One guy manages to clamber onto the stage and embrace Morrissey before being torn away and carried off stage.
He introduces us all to his Nephew Ben, his "Pride and Joy". Ahhhww!

Amazingly pitch-perfect, Morrissey breezes through a cracking set-list consisting of songs from "Ringleader of the Tormentors", "You Are The Quarry" and a few 'Smiths tracks. There are some shirt changes - three, infact and an appearance of his naked chest towards the end, as some lucky fiend catches a shirt tossed to the crowd by the Ringleader himself.

Morrissey is a lot like Marmite; you either LOVE him or hate him, but there is one thing which really cannot be denied by fans or unfans(I know someone who really dislikes him and has agreed with me!) is the fact that he is one of the best entertainers and live acts in the world! He's charming, funny, vocally strong, backed by a tight (if a little premature) band and an amazing showman. Highlight songs were: "Still Ill", "Life Is A Pigsty", "First of the Gang to Die", "Le Me Kiss You" and "In The Future When All's Well". Slightly put-off at first by the venue, but this did not detract at all from the experience and excitement of seeing his Royal Mozzness

Set List:
First Of The Gang To Die
Still IllThe Youngest Was The Most Loved
In The Future When All's Well
To Me You Are A Work Of Art
Girlfriend In A Coma
You Have Killed Me
I Will See You In Far-Off Places
At Last I Am Born
The Father Who Must Be Killed
Ganglord
Let Me Kiss You
Life Is A Pigsty
Trouble Loves Me
I Just Want To See The Boy Happy
How Soon Is Now?

Last Splash - The Breeders

Last Splash is the second full-lengh album from The Breeders. Comprising of Pixies' bassist Kim Deal, Tanya Donnelly (Belly, Throwing Muses), Kim's twin sister Kelly on lead guitar (who couldn't actually play when she joined) and drummer Jim MacPherson this four-piece fuse garage-grunge with surfer-rock coolness.
The mixture of Deal's coy, yet sexy vocal and the raw layering of guitars are perfectly married on songs such as "Roi" and "I Just Want To Get Along" and the songs "Cannonball", "One Divine Hammer" and "Saints", being the singles released are great - diferent in many ways, but all very strong, catchy rock/pop.
I love the sweetness of "Do You Love Me Now?", the sparceness-leading-to-all-out-garage-rock of "No Aloa" and the darkness of "Invisible Man".
Makes me feel like a swaggering-mosher! 5/5